Wet Shirt
by eponnia
Summary: Henry admits he has never completed a viewing of Pride and Prejudice. Jane is determined to fix that problem. [Post-film Jobley one-shot]


**AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is set sometime after the movie, when Henry and Jane are dating steadily. Because they do. I know they do.**

**Anyway, here is the first **_**Austenland**_** fic on FFN, as the website graciously created an archive per my request. I'm not saying this is the best fic ever, but I hope you enjoy **_**Wet Shirt**_**. **

**And yes, the title is relevant. **

* * *

"You _what_?"

Henry gave Jane an embarrassed smile. "It's true. I watched part of it, but never finished it."

She stared at him for a moment, belatedly realizing her mouth hung open. Closing it, she sputtered in confusion before asking, "But… _how_? With an aunt like Mrs. Wattlesbrook, and being in Austenland, and all of that, how could you _not_ watch it?"

He shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. "I don't know. I did watch some of it. Once…"

Jane stood from the small kitchen table, leaving her plate of lasagna with a determined look. Henry looked over his shoulder as his girlfriend marched to the shelves beside the TV, her long brown hair falling down her back.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm fixing your problem," she said in a matter-of-fact tone as she took a DVD case from a shelf. "You can't live without seeing this."

Henry watched as she opened the case, carefully removing the disc as if it was one of the most important items in the world. _For her_,_ it probably is_, he thought before taking her plate and his own to the couch. He patiently waited for her, holding out her plate when she turned from the TV, the opening credits before _Pride and Prejudice_ beginning to play on the screen. As she curled up to his side, plate of lasagna balanced precariously on her leg, Jane looked at him intently. "Which version did you see?"

"I'm not sure," he admitted. "I think Kiera Knightly was in it."

"You saw the 2005 version, then," she stated. "I did like that one, but this, the 1995 version," she added, gesturing to the TV with the remote, "is, simply put, the best adaption ever. Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth play Elizabeth and Darcy here. Technically this is a TV series, not a movie, like the version you watched. But it's considered the best adaption of the book, and I agree. By the way, there's only six episodes, but they're each an hour long, so we won't finish them tonight. It's already pretty late."

Henry leaned forward to place his now-empty plate on the coffee table before them, careful to ensure that Jane, who was still leaning against him, didn't fall over in her excitement as the opening scene began. "Don't forget to actually eat," he prompted with a smile, but her bright gaze was fixed on the TV.

"It's starting!" she cried with a grin, hushing him, but Henry only smiled in response as he leaned back on the couch. He put a loose arm around her shoulders, and she rested her head on his shoulder, eyes shining as she bit her lip in anticipation.

As _Pride and Prejudice_ began, Henry watched – he really did. But he kept getting distracted by the woman at his side. He noticed that her toes curled when she was extremely excited, and covered her mouth with a hand to muffle a squeal. Her eyes rarely moved from the screen, and she would occasionally utter short bursts of explanation before falling silent, drawing her knees up to her chest as she grinned from ear to ear.

What Henry did watch of _Pride and Prejudice_, he saw similarities in between himself and Mr. Darcy, and also his relationship with Jane as compared to Mr. Darcy's relationship with Elizabeth. The rocky start was there, and Henry swore the first conversation he had had with Jane at Austenland was nearly the same as the first conversation the two main characters shared in the adaptation, though he had no idea how that had happened. When Wickham appeared, Henry couldn't help but notice some commonalities between the character and Martin. He did not bring it up to Jane, however, as she was caught up in the story and didn't see the parallels. Henry did not want to open old wounds and cause his girlfriend stress and heartache.

The second episode ended with Collins' failed proposal to Elizabeth and Charlotte inviting the jilted suitor to Lucas Lodge. Henry rested his chin on the top of Jane's head as she curled up against his chest with a contented sigh.

"I have to grade exams."

Jane begrudgingly turned off the TV, but Henry found the will to leave the couch and his girlfriend hard to find. With a sigh of his own, he pressed his lips to her temple before gently untangling himself from her. "Are you finished with your dinner?" he asked, eyeing her half-full plate.

"Oh! I totally forgot!" Jane began finishing her cold lasagna quickly as Henry chuckled, standing and taking his own empty plate to the kitchen.

"Want me to put it in the microwave for you?" he said over his shoulder.

"It's fine!" she called.

Pulling out his briefcase, he began setting out stacks of papers on the small table, groaning inwardly at how much he had left to grade. As he finished shifting the stacks to place as many as he could on the table, he took an exam from the top of the pile. Scanning the page, he heard Jane get up from the couch; as she entered the kitchen, Henry saw her take his plate from the counter and begin rinsing it off alongside her own in the sink.

"Jane, I'm sorry, I was going to get to it after I finished this. You don't need to-"

"I took away your evening, so I'm saving you some time. Get back to grading."

"Yes, ma'am," he answered, receiving a snort from her in response.

Henry forced himself to keep his attention on the exams before him, marking every so often with a red pen. As he slowly made his way through the stack, he looked up to see Jane sitting down on the opposite side of the table.

"Where do I start?"

"Jane-"

"Do you have an answer key? You made the exam; you should know the correct answers," she said with a smile. Sighing good-naturedly, he slid the answer key over to her as she took an exam from the stack. Reaching across the table, she took one of his extra red pens and began grading.

For a long moment, the only sound in the kitchen was the scratching of pens on paper, but Jane broke the quiet. "Do you always do this in silence?"

"Normally I do this by myself, but I appreciate the company and the help," Henry said. Watching her bite her lip, he smiled. "You want to know what I thought of _Pride and Prejudice_, don't you?"

She nodded, ducking her head in embarrassment. "I enjoyed it," he offered, and her head shot up.

"Really?"

"Yes. I must say, when is the wet shirt scene Colin Firth did that I've heard so much about?"

Jane's eyes widened. "Wait- No. I haven't been... _gushing_, have I? I mean, I never wanted you to think-"

"I've only heard you... discuss the scene with Elizabeth once," Henry assured her. "Though you were rather enthusiastic."

Jane dropped her pen to bring her hands to her face, palms over her reddening cheeks. Henry couldn't keep himself from laughing at her mortified expression, but quickly amended, ashamed at his actions. "I'm sorry, truly. I don't mean to laugh at you. For the record, I have heard about that scene from other sources, not just you."

"Fine. Yes, I... enjoy that scene. But I... Ugh." Jane groaned, burying her face in her hands. "I can't believe we're having this conversation."

"Jane, I'm not jealous."

"You're not?" As she slowly lowered her hands to the table, he shook his head with a smile.

"No. It's your passion-"

"Colin Firth is not my passion," she said quickly, turning red all over again.

"I apologize. Poor wording choice on my part. I'm not jealous, and I'm not going to stop you from watching that scene. I'm also not going to stop you from looking at any other men. I'm not trying to control you. It's fine." He paused. "Well, I would hope you won't go chasing after other men, but that's a different topic entirely."

"Henry!" Jane exclaimed. "I'm not going to... to _chase_ after other men!"

"I know you won't," he agreed. "I trust you."

"Henry, I..." She sighed. "Do you want to know something?"

"Of course."

"For basically my entire life, I wanted my own Mr. Darcy," she began. "When we actually finish _Pride and Prejudice_ hopefully you'll understand why. But he was my dream man. A gentleman set apart from the scumbags I dated. Not that you're a scumbag. I mean- um, well, anyway, what I am trying to say, is, I looked for my entire life for my Mr. Darcy. But now?" The corners of her mouth were tugged up into a smile. "I don't want a Mr. Darcy anymore. I have my Mr. Nobley."

Henry lost himself in Jane's eyes before remembering he had to respond. "Hopefully I live up to Mr. Darcy's standards."

"Don't you see? You don't have to. I don't want you to. I don't _want_ a Mr. Darcy. I have you."

Henry was suddenly grateful that their kitchen table was small as Jane leaned forward. They met in the middle of the table as he moved to meet her, lips only parting for air. After a long, languid kiss, their foreheads resting against each other's, Henry wanted nothing more than to gaze into her eyes for the rest of the evening, as cliché as it sounded, but he sighed.

"There's still more exams to grade."

"Then let's finish them," Jane said matter-of-factly. Pressing her lips to his again quickly, she moved away to sit down, leaving him still leaning on the table. "Aren't you going to help me?" she asked, raising an eyebrow with a smirk.

"Right. Sorry." Henry sat down and stared at an exam that suddenly seemed much less interesting than before.

"Oh, and Henry?"

He looked up to see her casually looking at the answer key before turning back to the exam.

"Yes?"

"The wet shirt scene is at the end of the fourth episode."


End file.
